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Bear LakeMore than 28,000 years ago, faulting of massive blocks of the Earth's crust created a basin here 50 miles long and 12 miles wide. Bear Lake filled the entire valley during the last ice age, but it now has receded to cover an area 20 miles long and 8 miles wide, at an elevation of 5,900 feet. About half the lake lies in Utah and half in Idaho. The turquoise color is thought to be caused by limestone particles suspended in the water. Bear Lake National Wildlife Refuge occupies 17,600 acres of marshlands north of the lake, a favored stopping place for sandhill cranes, herons, white pelicans, egrets, and many species of ducks. Four species of fish have evolved in Bear Lake that are not found any other place in the world. David McKenzie, an early fur trapper, named the lake after many black bears once found here. Nomadic Indian tribes and groups of trappers frequented the shores during the 1820s and held 2 large rendezvous here. Mormons arrived beginning in 1863 to start scattered farms and ranches. |
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